26. Olana

Distance:	Dayhike
Difficulty :	Easy for children
Distance :	1 mile
Hiking time :	1 hour
High point/elevation gain :	200 feet, 50 feet
Hikable :	March-October
Map :	USGS Hudson South

When you travel in the Hudson Valley, art, history, and nature are inextricably intertwined. The three come together magnificently at Olana State Historic Site. The former home of the famed artist Frederic Church, Olana contains a charming Persian-style mansion preserved very much as it appeared in the 1880s, in a setting carefully landscaped to be both tamed and wild.

From New York City, take the Thruway (I-87) north to Exit 21 in Catskill. Follow the signs for the Rip Van Winkle Bridge and the city of Hudson. On the east side of the bridge, turn right (south) onto NY Route 9G. The well-marked entrance to Olana will be on your left after 1 mile. The entrance to the main parking area is 1.1 miles along a winding one-way road with occasional glimpses of the Hudson River and a large lake as you climb.

From the parking area, follow a set of stone steps down to the converted stables, where you will find restrooms and information about the site. If possible, take the guided tour of the house (call ahead as far as possible for reservations— For more contact information "See Addresses"). It lasts about 50 minutes and is interesting enough that even twelve-year-old boys will pay attention.

The painter of huge canvases showing the awesome power and beauty of nature, Frederic Church was one of the leading artists of his day. He saw landscape architecture as another art form. Between 1860 and 1891, Church oversaw the ongoing landscaping of the 250- acre property. In Church's own time the landscape included not only the sweeping lawns, clumps and groves of trees, and artificial lake you see now, but also a working farm, orchards, and 7.5 miles of carriage roads. When Church first bought the hilltop, it had been cleared as farmland. To create this artful landscape of open meadows and woods took the efforts of a small army of workmen, who planted thousands of trees throughout the property. They also dredged a swampy area at the base of the hill and built a dam there to create the lake.

Olana remained in the Church family until 1964, carefully preserved as it had been. To keep the property from being sold, a preservation group then bought it and transferred ownership to the State of New York. Since then, the landscape created by Church has gradually been restored to some of its former glory, and some walking trails have been laid out. The leisurely hike described here follows old carriage roads for 1 mile; more energetic hikers can easily piece together a much longer hike through the grounds. The grounds are attractive at any time of the year, but the optimal time to visit is probably late September to late October, when you can admire the fall foliage.

Start your walk at the mansion itself, where you can admire the views in all directions from the hilltop. Note how the house, even though it is in a style very different from the traditional Dutch and Colonial architecture of Hudson Valley, seems to fit naturally into the landscape. Kids will be especially taken with the colorful brickwork and bell tower on the house—it looks a bit like something out of a fairy story.

Follow the dirt carriage road leading away from the mansion as it curves past a lovely flower garden full of blooms in the spring and summer. Almost at once magnificent vistas up and down the Hudson River open out in front of you. This is still an agricultural area, and the lush fields and orchards you can see below you aren't all that different than they were in Church's day more than a century ago. This is a good place for some historic imagination games. What are five things you can see from here that are the same now as they were a hundred years ago? What are five things that are really, really different? Looking across the river from here, you can see some of the most famous peaks in the Catskill Mountains, including Indian Head Mountain (Hike 31) to the south and Acra Point (Hike 37) to the north.

As you continue on the old carriage road, you'll soon come to a resting bench and an informational easel telling you this was the site of Church's painting studio, demolished long ago. The carriage path meets the modern access road here. Turn left (north) onto the road (watch for cars) and walk along the asphalt briefly until you see the sign for visitor parking on the left. Look to your right and you'll see a signpost saying "FIRE LANE—NO PARKING." Beyond it is a rustic barrier with a signpost pointing in the directions of North Road and Ridge Road. Walk past the barrier and follow Ridge Road, built in 1884, as it turns off to the left, heading north and then west into the woods. (For a much longer walk with a much greater elevation gain, you can take North Road, heading east and south down the hill through woods and past the remains of the old farm to the lake.)

Because Ridge Road is a former carriage road, it is broad and flat, with gentle curves. It winds through open woods and along a ridge for roughly 0.25 mile. You'll eventually arrive at another easel signboard at a point with fabulous views of fields and the river. Here's a good example of art giving nature a helping hand: The trees here were carefully planted by Church to create a "window" for the views.

Ridge Road brings you out of the woods and past the house again on your left. Follow the road south for another 0.25 mile or so until it again intersects with an asphalt approach road. Turn left onto the road (be careful of cars) and follow it for 0.1 mile until you arrive back at the old studio site. Retrace your steps to the mansion, the visitor center, and your car.

Note: The grounds at Olana are open daily from 8 a.m. to dusk. The house is open for tours Wednesdays through Sundays from April to October; it is closed in the winter.